Parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Tourism Senator Irene Sandiford-Garner says Britain still remains Barbados’ main source market for tourists.
In this connection, she said Barbados was the only Caribbean route with the demographic clientele significant enough to fill the increased upper class capacity of Virgin Atlantic’s newly launched A330s. Those planes boasts 33 seats in its upper class suite, 48 premium seats and 185 economy places.
Speaking at a brief ceremony and tour of the aircraft at the Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA) on Tuesday, Sandiford-Garner said the new schedule of Virgin formed part of the cooperative marketing contract between the Barbados Tourism Authority and Virgin Holidays for the next four years.
The Parliamentary Secretary said the launch of the Airbus service came on the heels of the launch of the Barbados Inclusive package which was designed as a “proactive mechanism to counter any declines in arrivals and to aggressively stimulate our core markets to reverse any negative trends”.
 “It also forms part of the corporate strategy to cut costs and focus on higher yields wherever possible. Over the years Virgin Atlantic Airways has proved to be a good strategic partner for Barbados and we pledge to continue to work closely with you now and in the future,” she told officials of GAIA, the Ministry of Tourism and Virgin Atlantic. (GE)
